Starting from the 2020/2021 academic year, Stipendium Hungaricum scholarship holders participating in non-Hungarian language training must take part in a Hungarian as a foreign language and culture course (hereinafter referred to as the Hungarian abbreviation: MID) in the first two Active semesters of their studies. The aim of this initiative is to contribute to the successful integration of students in Hungary and to the promotion of the Hungarian language.

Learning Hungarian is mandatory, failure to comply with the requirement will result in the retraction of scholarship allowances.

Who does it apply for? 

For which fellows is it obligatory to take the MID course:

• first-year students in a Bachelor’s program,
• first-year students in a Master's program,
• first-year students in a one-tier Master’s program,
• for students in vocational preparatory program,
• for those who have transferred from self-financed training in the first and second semesters of scholarship training

For which follows it is not obligatory to take the MID course:

• participants in a Doctoral program,
• participants in Hungarian language preperatory training course,
• students participating in a short study program of less than 90 credits,
• those who have attended school teaching in Hungarian language in their home country or possess at least a basic-level (B1, state-recognized, complex) language exam,
• those who have previously participated in a Hungarian as a foreign language SH preparatory course for a higher education study program offered in Hungarian,
• those who have already completed the mandatory two-semester Hungarian as a foreign language and culture course at another level of qualification as SH scholarship holders (the student provides proof of course completion with a grade),
• those who do not have at least a basic level language examination but can demonstrate equivalent language proficiency at the higher education institution of which they are enrolled. The higher education institution decides at its own authority whether to exempt these students from the compulsory Hungarian as a foreign language and culture course,
• students who have a learning disability that significantly hinders language learning (e.g., dyslexia, dysgraphia, etc.) and can provide proof of it (either a document issued in the student's home country or in Hungary is acceptable).

Stipendium Hungaricum Scholarship Holders studying in a foreign language programme who pass the intermediate level (B1) Hungarian as a foreign language complex language exam during their studies are exempt from the obligation to participate in the MID course.In case a student wishes to be exempt from the MID course can submit a request here: Exemption from the mandatory Hungarian Language Course in the academic year 2024-2025 (elte.hu)

The students will be notified at the beginning of the semester by the Department of Hungarian as a Foreign Language and / or the Faculty Coordinator about the process of the application. In the meantime please wait patiently, you will be contacted when you can apply for the course.

Criteria and consequences

The scholarship holder must prove that he / she has attended the two-semester MID course and passed the exam by obtaining a diploma (certificate of completed Hungarian course) by 31 August of the given academic year at the latest.  The results will be arranged within the University.

If this does not happen, the scholarship student will receive a reduced subsistence allowance from the following academic year! 

A scholarship holder who has completed the course but does not take the exam / fails the exam can pass the exam in the following years. If the the student passes the exam, he / she will be entitled to the full subsistence allowance again.

If a student, who has not fulfilled the language learning obligation and therefore the subsistence allowance has been reduced, enters a new level of education and receives an SH scholarship, he / she can start studying again with full subsistence allowance.

The obligation has no effect on the development of the student status, it does not affect the conditions for obtaining a degree.

Reduction of allowance

If the scholarship holder does not fulfill the study and examination obligations regarding the MID course, his / her HUF 43,700 subsistence allowance will be reduced from the second year as follows:

• by failing to attend class visits, reduced to HUF 0 / month until the end of the scholarship,
• in case of missing/ failing at the exam, reduced to HUF 30,000 / month until the scholarship holder passes the exam.

The reduction does not affect the scholarship holder’s other additional allowances.

General Hungarian language courses

For students, who have already completed the mandatory MID course, Eötvös Loránd University offers Hungarian language and culture courses whole academic year, covering all levels* from complete beginner (A1) to proficiency levels (C2) described by the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR).

The general language courses are free for any students enrolled for a degree program at ELTE (including upper-year Stipendium Hungaricum students; students with the Scholarship Programme for Christian Young People) if they register for the Hungarian course as an elective (szabadon választható) course in Neptun. Registration will be available during the "first-come-first-served" course registration period. For more information visit here.

*certain level groups are launched only with the minimum number of 5 people

If you have any further questions about the course, please contact:

• your Faculty Coordinator,
• the Department of Hungarian as a Foreign Language: sh.hunlang@btk.elte.hu
• further information: MID website: Learn Hungarian language at ELTE

STIPENDIUM HUNGARICUM OPERATIONAL REGULATIONS (III.2)